Hi All,
After weeks of advertising my car in Carsales I found a buyer from QLD interested in coming to Sydney to test drive and purchase the car. He wants to do cash in hand transaction as bank transfer will take 24 or more. I can only be available after 6pm.
"Arabic accent"
Not racist, but here is the problem. Goodluck.
Yes you are.
Hang on.
You're servicing at BMW Sydney which is likely the most expensive place in the entire country if not the planet to service a BMW but you also say you have no comprehensive insurance on a $24,000 asset? Am I the only one who thinks maybe something is up here..?
Seriously guys. I just don’t need any dramas. Is there any liability on me as the buyer was responsible for checking the car? He said he would call me tomorrow what the heck for? I kept telling him to check the car properly but he said he knows these cars more than me.
He said he would call me tomorrow what the heck for?
To try to pressure you in to giving some of your money back, or pressure you in to paying his "mechanic mate" for unnecessary repairs.
Unless he can prove (in a court of law) that you knew the car had issues and you hid those issues from him during the test drive, you're not liable for anything.
Buying a vehicle privately
If you buy a vehicle from a private seller, you are not covered by the MDRA or the Australian consumer law.
https://www.nsw.gov.au/driving-boating-and-transport/buying-…
To try to pressure you in to giving some of your money back, or pressure you in to paying his "mechanic mate" for unnecessary repairs.
Yep, this will definitely be the angle they're going with. Fake a fault and have a 'mechanic' say it'll cost $xxxx that they're expecting you to reimburse.
The transaction is final, block the number & screen any new numbers.
Not that I expect they'll do anything, but if you're worried about them knowing your address, make sure you have some security cameras set up.
If he refused to get the car checked prior to purchase then that's on him. Especially if he arrogantly turned down your suggestion to get the car inspected by a professional.
I hope that he's lying and just trying to extract some money from you. He'd be more inclined to leave you alone (or keep harassing you verbally via phone/text for a short while). If the car has actually broken down, then I'd be worried about uninvited guests showing up at my door. Just call the police if this happens.
Reddit might put your mind at ease. Most likely a scam, just forget about it.
https://www.reddit.com/r/LegalAdviceUK/comments/1599lq5/sold…
Guys done this to me once, bought the car, drove off, later that night messaged me saying it's got faults etc.
I told him that I'm a police officer and have reported this into our system and he stopped contacting me.
keep us posted, just getting up to grab some pop-corn….. sorry OP, we all hope it turns out well for you, as you seem decent, and now you have to deal with dicks like this.
Although, the odds are extremely low, something could have gone amiss, I mean statistically, its possible, but very unlikely, as you claim you just had it serviced.
Good luck
If OP is missing, don’t forget it could still be his psycho boss! Or even his wife that took 10G of him and wanted more!
Lol this is like a twisty TV drama lol
OPs post history is unbelievable. How can someone have this much drama in their life and foolishly rely on ozbargain randoms for support and direction? Crikey!
OP sold car to bikies … who could he call now?
Also… don’t take the car back. They might already own a broken down model of your car and be using your car as a parts donor.
I recently sold a car and got the seller to issue a bank cheque. CBA charges $12 for one. I used the same method to pay a deposit on a new car.
Safe public meeting place, preferably a bank for direct deposit. If cash, use counterfeit pen and counter. Before test drive, verify license/insurance. After verified payment and signed bill of sale, release car, cancel registration.
Counterfeit pen? Paper currency was phased out almost 30 years ago in Australia.
OP? Still there?
Thank you guys. No further calls were made today but I’m assuming there will be one tomorrow. I did everything by the books even sold the car much cheaper value and did not even haggle a dime with him. Sadly these pricks in our society exist and gives us a bad time.
I read the laws now and that car is none of my business even if they do bank robbery. I’m just scared for my safety as they have my home address and everything.
Police here doesn’t take things seriously as they have far more dangerous things to deal with.
If I hear him threat me or wants to meet me for the car or come to my house I’ll call the police.
Be sure to take photo of the buyer and clear photos of their license. Get as much detail about them as you can, in case of fake ID. Write a bill of sale signed by both parties as proof of transfer of ownership.
I've sold cars interstate and received toll notices as the buyer didn't deregister the NSW plate and transfer it to VIC as intended. Sending evidence of the sale and nominating the new owner's licence on the fine notice quickly solved them, but the fineprints suggest it was probably due to the new owner accepting the fine, rather than challenging the ownership (then they would be committing fraud).
Keep your key secured in your home, away from your car and preferably in a metal case as car theft is high these days.
Best of luck with your sale!
Same thing happened to me!
Had to go in person to the RTA for the transfer of ownership too.
Surprising in all the discussion, no one suggested to justanick to do a basic contract of sale (such as https://findmecars.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Receipt… ). Whilst private car sales are final and you don't have any liability, it's always a good idea to get the buyer to sign a simple contract that makes them aware of this as not everyone knows it.
I hand wrote a receipt out to the buyer and we both signed it. I sold X to Y for $$$ as is on (todays date)
Then we both took a photo of it.
Deal's done. Block his number if he tries again.
ah yes - popcorn city - deal done then scary phone call saying car is broken
waiting for the next exciting episode of "What Could Go Wrong … !?"
What bank transfer takes 24 hours in 2025? Red flag there.
You must be new to the world of banking in Aus. Not all transactions are instant.
Some banks have daily Osko transfer limits, others have delays for first-time payees.
Those two are from my own personal experience. I’m sure there’s plenty of other reasons an instant payment gets delayed. Osko going down etc.
Others block 2nd-3rd transfers to the account for security reasons…. even when the damn account is in the same name for the sender and receiver, and when it prompts you for the money laundering questions you tell them it's your account
/RantOver
I did a PayID transfer Sunday evening and the recipient still hasn't received the funds. I have done this same transfer to the same PayID several times now.
So you tell me, what bank transfers takes 24 hours in 2025????
I've done large transfers with CBA to new accounts, including a large new car dealership. The bank holds the funds for 24 hours.
yeah this has happened to me on numerous occasions, bank holding the money for 24 hours for new accounts. I've been on both ends of this, had to tell a buyer who showed up with a trailer to come back tomorrow, and likewise i had to go home after the bank did this to me for another purchase.
I received 12 calls from 5 different random numbers. By mistake I think one of the guys left a few seconds Arabic message. I couldn’t get the meaning even after using Google translate.
Anyways I blocked them all but worst bit I still have to receive calls from work and I don’t have all the numbers saved to filter out the phone calls.
This has been a nightmare for me. Scammers are all over the place. He was very smart to ask me what I do etc on the get go. I didn’t ask questions as I knew he would be lying.
I also got him to sign a deed of sale. He was not happy to sign it and kept saying “Brother you worry too much”.
I don’t know if he’s using his real address or name. The car got transferred to his wife’s name who wasn’t present at the time but he showed me her licence details for NSW.
This has more than a whiff of troll about it.
So you didn't ask questions as you knew he would be lying but you gave him accurate answers to his questions about what you do etc?
Answer the phone, tell anyone who is calling about the car that the call is being recorded and hang up.
Yes it's annoying but it will die down eventually.
Yes I was so silly. It actually took me 5 -10 minutes that they are not good people but they were very smart to ask me what I etc and I told them the truth. They can’t do anything at all with my work. I was more concerned about selling the car and getting the money into my account.
Even after I blocked those accounts I still didn’t block the original number of the buyer. I got two calls today but they are clever not leaving any text messages.
I hope these calls end soon.
Don't we all…..
Why would someone leave you messages in a language you don't understand? This makes no sense.
I can’t comment on the rest of the details but when I last sold my car:
1. When the buyer came to test drive, I swapped keys/took ID while the two of them test drove the car (2 seater and they were father-son and the car they drove was far more expensive than mine)
2. Buyer made a bank transfer on a Saturday, then called the bank to have the transaction clear instantly. Can’t confirm whether there were any additional fees or whether the payment came from same bank but this maybe something you can inquire about?
3. Then accompanied buyer to Service NSW to complete the notice of disposal together.
Done and dusted by Saturday midday. The timing of the payment clearing will definitely depend on whether both banks are on osko/NPP though as mentioned above, and even if they are, new payee payments are held for a little longer.
You can probably test this by sending/receiving a dollar or some cents prior to the sale transaction and then at sale, they’ll no longer be a new payee.
Buy a UV torch and shine it on each note. Genuine notes have holograms which are not visible unless a UV light is shone on them.
I've always bought and sold with cash up until recently. Guy rocked up and wanted to buy my car for 12.5k using bank transfer. We both had NAB accounts with 20k osko limits. Money landed in my account in 1s and I transferred it out to my main account with ING. No fumbling around with dozens of notes, worrying about whether the notes are legit or taking it to the bank to deposit.
I do bank transfer only, cash is way too much hassle.
If the last guy I sold my car too rocked up with 50K I'd have been pissed.
shows up with $50k cash without warning…..that would be very darude of him
I sold my car, in nsw to someone from the act, in cash at the start of covid. I think cash is usually preferred by all. There's low risk of counterfeit cash.
Carsales does have an option for a system to hold the cash electronically for both parties but I've never used it.
Also, make sure to get a picture of their licence. I almost forgot to get this but the came back for something and I took a picture. Good thing I did because I got a fine and transferred it to him.
I had to go in person to process the transfer of ownership for. Couldn't do it online since the buyer was from out of state.
I have read your comments how you don't want to take time off work for this, aswell as your clear skepticism of the transaction despite the buyer offering to do things like drive to you, handover cash in person, aswell as even go to a bank with you….However, as it's a $24k+ transaction AND you are anxious about the legitimacy of the transaction, despite all of the above, i think you are being the inflexible one.
If i were you, given the sale value AND your anxiety on the transaction, i would take 1 hour off of work to go get this transaction done at a bank so that you can put it to rest and not worry about the legitimacy of the cash.
I respect you for showing caution, it's good to be safe, however being cautious does also take extra effort (like immediately depositing the money in a bank during business hours)
As you met at the bank to do the transaction - did you then deposit the cash into an account at the bank? If so then no need for people to suggest ways to check if the cash is counterfeit or not.
You've got the cash, you've got the paperwork - everything else is his problem. He will eventually understand he can't do anything and will leave you alone - hopefully sooner rather than later
Thanks mate. I hope so. He found that I’m a nice guy and wanted to test the waters to threaten me and scam me for extra money. I did all the above and disposed the car to his spouse or who ever in NSW he had the licence from. The rest is his problem. I even discounted the price of the car by $3.5k.
He bought the car "as is", there is no warranty or obligation on you to do anything once he took the car. Heck he could have been redlining it and doing burnouts until the engine light came on, how would you know?
End of the day he sounds like a scammer trying to get money or a refund out of you. Just be very firm that there is no obligation on your part to offer him a refund or even take the car back. If it gets even a hint of being aggressive just straight away say you feel uncomfortable and will now report all his details to the police (because you have all his details) and he will back off. Just like any bully's, they want an easy target, not someone who is going to put up a fight.